Service-tray.



G. E. BILTON'.

SERVICE TRAY.

APPLICATION FILED ocT. 26, 1915.

1,217,266, Ptented Fen-221917.

GEORGE EDWIN BILTON, 0F TORONTD, ONTARIO, CANADA.

SERVICE-TRAY.

Speccaton of Letters Patent. Patented Feb. 2'?, 1951"?.

Application led October 26, 19.15. Serial No. 58,015.

.To all 'whom it may concern.'

Be it known that l, GEORGE EDWIN BIL"- ToN, a subject of the King of Great Britain, and resident of 141 Bloomfield avenue, in the city of Toronto, county of York, Province of Ontario, in the Dominion of Canada, manufacturer, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Service-Trays, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates toimprovements in service trays as described in the present specication and shown in the accompanying drawings that form part of the same.

The invention consists essentially of the novel construction and arrangement of parts whereby a service tray is provided with legs adapted ,to fold inwardly flat against the under side4 thereof and in the novel means for extending said legs to form a table and fork locking said legs in their extended and collapsed positions.

The objects of theiinvention are to pro- Vide a service tray which may be readily transposed to form a table, and generally to provide a service tray which will be ornamental and neat of design, inexpensive to manufacture, durable and efficient.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the tray in its extended position.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the tray in its extended position with the legs removed therefrom.

Fig. 3 is a view of the bottom of the tray in its collapsed condition.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on the line A-A. ofFig` 3.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional detail of one end of the tray in its collapsed condition showing' in dotted lines the position taken by the legs and operating levers when in the extended position.

Like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in each figure.

Referring to the drawings, 1 is the top of the tray substantially rectangular in shape and being made. of any suitable wood and having the rectangular slots 2 in the center of each end thereof.

5 is a molding of any suitable design encircling the top 1 and having the slots 6 in the ends thereof registering with the slots 2 in said top, said molding extending a considerable distance below the top 1 and forming a means for concealing the legs when in the collapsed condition.

7 are wooden bars substantiallysquare in cross section and being hingedly Vsecured to the transverse wooden strips 8 on the under side of the top 1 adjacent to the molding 5 so that when said ybars are turned outwardly on the hinges 9 their outer sides will` extend downwardly parallel with said moldlng.

10 are wooden legs rigidly secured to one -of the bars 7 adjacent to the outer ends thereof and being of such a length that their outer ends terminate adjacent to the other bar 7.

11 are wooden legs rigidly secured to the other of the bars 7 a short distance from the end of said bar so that in the collapsed con'- dition said legs will fold between the legs 10, and being of the same length as the said legs 10.

12 are wooden brackets secured to the under side of the top 1 at each end of said top adjacent to the centers of the bars 7.

13 are flat metal springs secured on the outer sides of the brackets 12 by the metal straps 141, and having their slightly offset and curved outer ends extending over the b'ars 7 and terminating adjacent to the molding 5.

15 are flat metal bars mounted on the inner sides of the bars 7 at each end of the tray and having their outer ends bent at right angles and slotted as at 16, said bars extending, when the tray is in the collapsed position, from the inner edges of the bars 7 to the outer edges of the molding 5 and, when the legs are extended, taking a vertical position within the recess 6, the lower ends of said bars extending downwardly past the springs 13 and engaging the outer ends of said springs for locking the legs in their extended positions.

17 are levers mounted in the slots 16 of the bars 15 between the said bars 15 and the wooden bars 7 and havingtheir inner ends 18 bent at right angles, said ends 18 resting, when the legs are collapsed, between the bars 7 andthe brackets 12 and when the legs are extended resting on the inner side of the springs 13 adjacent to the outer ends thereof.

1t will thus be seen that when the legs are extended. they are securely locked by means of the ends of the springs 13 abutting the lower ends of the bars 15 and in order to release the legs it is only necessary to press downwardly on the levers 17 which forces the outer ends of the said springs below the ends of the hars 15 and as the said springs are curved downwardly from theirl outer ends the lower ends of the bars 15 and levers 17 will slide lfreely down the curved incline and force the legs to their collapsed positions, provided the operator partially moves the said legs to their collapsed positions.

19 are handles on the outer ends of the levers 17.

20 are handles secured to the molding 5 over the slots 6 in said molding.

21 are rubber guards on the under side of the molding` to prevent the tray from scratching any surface on which it may be placed.

1When the tray is in the collapsed condition the legs rest inwardly flat against the under side of the top 1 and the bars 15 and the levers 17 rest between the springs 13 and the bars 7, the handles 19 on said levers protruding slightly beyond the molding 5 and below the handles 20. j

lt will thus be seen that when collapsed the legs will be completely concealed by the molding and from the upper side the tray will assume the appearance of an ordinary tra 1lll/'hen it is desired to transpose the tray into a table the tray is grasped by the handles 20 and the handles 19 on the levers 1'? are raised by simply placing` the fingers beneath them and exerting a slight upward pressure. This has the effect of drawing the levers 17 and the bars 15 along the springs 13 and as the said spring has a downward curve from the inner end the weight of the legs will easily force said levers and bars to their extended positions between the bars 7 and the molding 5, the bars 15 extending slightly beyond the springs 13 so that the ends of said springs will abut said bars and securely lock said legs in their extended positions.

1What l claim is 1. 1n a servicetray, a base having its ends slotted adjacent to the centers thereof, a molding encircling said base and extending therebelow and having slots therein coinciding with the slots in said base, handles on said molding adjacent to said slots, base strips secured to the under side of said base adjacent to the ends thereof, transverse bars hingedly secured to said base strips, legs rigidly secured to the ends of one of said bars, legsl rigidly secured a. short distance from the ends of the other of said bars so that when folded the legs from one bar will rest between the legs of the other bar, brackets on the under side of said base adjacent to said base strips, springs rigidly secured to said brackets andextending outwardly adjacent to said molding and means between said springs and said transverse bars coacting with said springs for holding said legs in their collapsed and extended positions.

2. ln a service tray, a base having its ends slotted adjacent to the centers thereof, a molding encircling said base and extending therebelow and having slots therein coinciding with the slots in said base, handles on said molding adjacent to said slots, base strips secured to the under side of said base adjacent to the ends thereof, transverse bars hingedly secured to said base strips, legs rigidly secured to the ends of one of said bars, legs rigidly secured a short distance from the ends of the other of said bars so that when folded the legs from one bar will rest between the legs of the other bar, brackets on the under side of said base adj acent to said base strips, flat metal springs se- 'cured on said brackets and having their outer ends curved in substantially inverted arch-shape and terminating adjacent to said molding, flat metal bars mounted on said transverse bars and having their outer ends bent upwardly at right angles, said bars being adapted to rest within the recess at the ends of said tray when the said legs are extended and to abut the outer ends of said springs to lock said legs to their extended positions and means for releasing said bars from engagement with said springs to collapse said legs.

3. In a service tray, a base having its ends slotted adjacent to the centers thereof, a molding encircling said base and extending therebelow and having slots therein coinciding with the slots in said base, handles on said molding adjacent to said slots, base strips secured to the under side of said base adjacent to the ends thereof, transverse bars hingedly secured to said base strips, legs rigedly secured to the ends of one of said bars, legs rigidly secured a short distance from the ends of the other of said bars so that when folded the legs from one bar will rest between the legs of thev other bar, brackets on the under side of said base adjacent to l said base strips, flat metal springs secured on said brackets and having their outer ends curved in substantially inverted arch-shape and terminating adjacent to said molding, fiat slotted metal bars mounted on said transverse bars and having their outer ends bent upwardly at right angles, said bars being adapted to rest in the recesses at the ends of said tray when the said legs are extended and to abut the outer ends of said springs to lock said legs to their extended positions, levers slidably mounted in said slotted bars and having their inner ends bent at right angles and abutting the inner sides of said transverse bars when the legs are collapsed, said levers, in the extended positions of the legs, taking avertical position between said bars and said transverse bars and having their angle ends resting on the upper side of said springs and adapted to receive pressure for releasing said springs from engagement with said bars.

4. In a device of the class described, a and thereby release the latch mechanism and tray, legs rigidly connected by bars, hinges the legs. 10 securing said bars beneath said tray, arc- Signed at the city of Toronto, Ontario, shaped flat springs rigidly secured beneath Canada, this fifteenth day of July, 1915.

said tray and adapted to hold said legs GEORGE EDWIN BILTON. closed and serve as latch bars in holding said Witnesses:

legs open7 and trip levers adapted to trav- W. G. HAMMOND,

erse and depress said springs in operation, M. BLAGKWELL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for v'e cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

